Greek Breakfast and Other Untapped Opportunities
Written by Katerina
Thursday, 20 January 2011 09:19
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One month later, in November 2010, seven chefs were brought together at Athens International Airport in Greece so as to create what they perceive to be the ideal Greek breakfast menu. The event was partially hosted by Xenia Exhibitions, which showcases hotel and restaurant supplies and services. Organizers perceive the event as a way to help hotels introduce more innovative breakfast menu offerings that will make them more competitive.

 This initiative is part of an effort by the Hellenic Chamber of Hotels (XEE) to promote Greek cuisine as a significant tourism “ambassador” which could strengthen the positioning of Greece as a unique tourism destination and offer a competitive advantage. The XEE hopes that the “Greek Breakfast” will become in the long run part of a Greek “culinary diplomacy” strategy and will ultimately add value to the hospitality industry. The initiative will attempt to bring some local breakfast specialities onto menus and create synergies with producers of high quality locally-produced food and drink products. This could assist in rejuvenating the Greek economy. One of the end deliverables will be the development of a book with “Greek Breakfast” concepts, complete with steps as to how toimplement the programs. The publication would be distributed to hoteliers.

 Kairos Consumers strongly favorssuch initiatives based on research that supports positive consumer perceptions toward Greek cuisine in general. Such a program could be expanded further. In an effort to forecast the potential success of the Greek breakfast strategy, Kairos Consumers conducted a pilot study among U.S. consumers so as to identify the importance that consumers place on food prior to visiting a foreign county, willingness to try a local/unfamiliar food when visiting a country and consumer perception regarding what constitutes a “Greek Breakfast”, with the following items receiving mention:

Source: Kairos Consumers. Results based on Question: “Please list the top 3 things (ingredients) that you expect a ‘Greek Breakfast’ to include”

 Also, in January 2011, Kairos Consumers explored the “Greek Breakfast” idea through social media mentions in the U.S. Based on commentary found through major social media sites, Greek breakfast was generally associated with a meal that includes Greek-style yogurt as the main ingredient, topped with items such as fruit, nuts and/or cereal/granola.

What this means

If successful, the “Greek Breakfast” concept can be expanded further to various eating occasions such as snacks, on-the-go foods, lunch (home, restaurant and office settings), dinners etc. Restricting such an initiative only to tourists visiting Greece is somewhat limiting over the long term. Kairos Consumers recommends that food companies identify the untapped opportunities hidden in retailing and foodservice channels that could potentially represent lucrative exports. Listening carefully to the "voice of the consumer” is imperative in determining whether or not a product or concept will translate effectively to new markets. Emulating the success of Greek-style yogurt, Kairos Consumers can help companies understand what the next success story may be and how companies can act quickly to capitalize on consumer interest. Want to know more? Visit  Kairos Now and download our complimentary study!

Last Updated on Wednesday, 02 February 2011 12:34